Symphonyonline winter 2013

Surprise&
by Chester Lane
Armed with new
research on
donor motivation
and subscriber
behavior,
orchestras are
turning their
attention to
newcomers in
their audience—
and finding that
unexpected
rewards breed
loyalty and
increased
commitment.
F
or the whole month of
October last fall, patrons
arriving at Avery Fisher
Hall for a concert by the
New York Philharmonic
discovered
envelopes
taped to the backs of
certain seats—white rectangles scattered
throughout the hall in what appeared to
be a random pattern. If one of these seats
happened to be theirs, they would open
the envelope to find a coupon good for
half the price of the orchestra’s latest CD,
a recording of Carl Nielsen’s Symphonies
2 and 3 under the baton of Music Director Alan Gilbert. Also in the envelope was
a personalized note from a Philharmonic
musician, complete with that individual’s
photo. Depending on the patron’s status,
the note thanked them for their subscription purchase, or acknowledged that they
were a first-year subscriber, or expressed
44
Chicago Symphony
ticketing
representative Arif
Negiz surprised a
patron in December
with Traditions and
Transformations,
a CSO Resound
release featuring
Yo-Yo Ma, Wu Man,
and the Silk Road
Ensemble.